Here we are for another Windows Wednesday! Today, we will begin to look at Sanctuary Window 7—The Man of Sorrows. The highest portion of the window, the Old Testament image, comes from the book of Job. The book tells the story of Job, a man considered to be pious and deserving of the blessings of the Lord. Satan challenges God, saying that it is easy for a man blessed by God to be righteous. God stands firm that no matter what happens to Job, he will remain faithful.

We see Job, collapsed on the ground and covered in sores (skillfully chipped out of the glass pieces representing his arms), having just lost all his worldly goods and family. His three friends look upon his situation and seek an explanation for his suffering. His friends conclude that Job must be receiving punishment for some sin. “‘Think now, who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off?'” asks Eliphaz (Job 4:7). Knowing in his heart that he has not sinned, Job therefore concludes that God is unjustly punishing him. In a face-to-face confrontation with God, he realizes that the ways of God are unknowable. God sees that, even after the trials inflicted upon Job by Satan, he is a faithful and deserving man. He then restores and multiplies the wealth and prosperity Job had enjoyed before the trials.

Job serves as a testament to the limitations of human understanding. We can’t know what our future holds, and only trusting in God will ensure the best outcome. Faith in the goodness of God, even in times of great suffering, is the message of this window. Through the story of Job, we see that it is not by any specific action we ourselves take, but instead through the grace of God that we are lifted from the lowest points in our lives.

Now when Job’s three friends heard of all these troubles that had come upon him, each of them set out from his home—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They met together to go and console and comfort him. When they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him, and they raised their voices and wept aloud; they tore their robes and threw dust in the air upon their heads. They sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great. Job 2:11–13

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About the Author

Adam Alderson is the business manager and director of Resurrection at the United Methodist Church of Kent. He has a B.A. in Classics with a minor in Art History from Kent State University, and enjoys reading, graphic and web design, and singing and acting locally. Adam lives in Stow with his wife, Patti, and son, Alexander.